


a compliment a day (means he might be here to stay)

by bitchbabymurdock



Series: boy in the bubble [4]
Category: Daredevil (TV), The Punisher (TV 2017)
Genre: Flirting, Fluff, Gen, Healthy Relationships, M/M, Supportive Relationships, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, can be read as platonic though, kind of?, matts friends are going to love the hell out of matt if it's the last thing they do, soft frank, technically nothing romantic is said or done but, the whole thing has some pretty romantic undertones
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-14
Updated: 2019-09-14
Packaged: 2020-10-18 04:02:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,783
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20632772
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bitchbabymurdock/pseuds/bitchbabymurdock
Summary: One thing leads to another, and Frank decides to compliment Matt (at least) once a day. Matt is caught off guard and flustered (but really, really pleased).





	a compliment a day (means he might be here to stay)

**Author's Note:**

> literally just me projecting the whole 'thankful n rlly content' energy i had today since it was chuseok. hopefully everyone had a nice day! (chuseok - friday the 13th + harvest moon = no bad vibes. it's pemdas)  
also! this fic is in the same au as 'the road is long, we carry on' (aka a matt/frank high school au but with ninjas) although you don't have to read that or anything else in the series to read this. this can really take place any time during the plot, but ig it can fit after ch 14? idk

In quite possibly the most unpredictable of events ever, Foggy asks Frank to hang out sometime.

Matt’s caught off guard but Frank even more so, and he would laugh at how abruptly Frank’s heart stopped if his own wasn’t behaving pretty similarly itself.

“You,” Frank says slowly, “and me. Hang out.”

“Yeah. We can watch some movies on Netflix or something, you know?”

No, no one knows.

Foggy seems to realize that, and he shifts from foot to foot. “Uh, okay. Well, I’ll see you later. Oh, and Matt- my mom wanted me to tell you to come over sometime. She’s gotten it into her head that you’ve been deprived of homecooked meals for a while, which I’m pretty sure is true, but whatever. So stop by whenever you’re free, okay?”

Matt nods. It is, surprisingly, not true. Granted, none of the meals he or Stick prepared had nearly as much care and love put into it, they were still technically homemade.

“Cool. I need to copy Marci’s homework before second period, so I’m going to head off. Stay out of trouble, you two!” He waves at them then speed-walks away, calling out to Marci who’s walking some distance away.

“Huh,” Frank says. “That was… Interesting.”

“I was going to say ‘fucking weird’ but that works too,” Matt says and grins when Frank chuckles in response.

“Yeah, yeah, always a critic. We should probably start going to class anyway.”

They start walking, and Matt gives Frank a curious look when they continue along the same path. “Isn’t your class down the other hall?”

Frank nods. “Yeah. Figured I’d walk with you to your first class, though.”

And that’s- something. They both know Matt’s more than capable of taking care of himself, so that means that Frank isn’t doing it out of concern or incorrectly-placed pity. Maybe to spend more time together, or so they can talk a little more- Matt doesn’t know the exact reason why, but he doesn’t need to for it to make him smile. “Fair.” They arrive at the classroom not much later, and Matt can’t help but give Frank a big smile as he says goodbye. “I’ll see you later.”

“Right,” Frank says, heartbeat hammering something fierce in his chest. “I’ll, uh, see you.” He turns and heads down the hall, leaving Matt alone in his thoughts as he wonders what that was all about.

*

Foggy steps up to him, placing a steady hand on each of his shoulders. “Matt,” he says with a seriousness in his voice, “you know I care about you, right? Like, a lot?”

Matt attempts to shake off the contact, but Foggy remains firm. “Uh, sure, buddy. What’s going on?”

Foggy shakes his head emphatically. “Dude, you gotta know how much you mean to me. You’re my best friend and I love you to bits, even when you do stupid and irresponsible things. You get that?”

Matt uses his own hands to carefully pry Foggy’s away. “Foggy, are you okay?”

“Matt!” Frank jogs up to them, hovering by Matt’s side once he arrives. “How, uh- how are you doing?”

Matt gives him a dubious look. “Fine,” he says slowly. “How are you?”

“Good, great, I’m great. Absolutely fine. Peachy.”

“You know, if you wanted me to believe that, then you probably should’ve stuck with just one of those responses,” Matt says dryly. “What’s going on?” He pauses, then narrows his eyes. “Did something happen with the two of you?”

Foggy makes a mock affronted noise. “What, I can’t tell my best friend how much he means to me?”

“No,” Matt answers with a roll of his eyes. “What happened?”

“Don’t mind them, Murdock.” Marci pops her gum once, twice as she makes her way over to them. “They watched some terrible sappy movie about love and friendship. Foggy’s been telling everyone he knows how much he cares about them since last night.” She makes a thoughtful noise. “He’s probably only doing this to you now because you weren’t paying attention to your phone, or something.”

Matt shifts awkwardly. “Well, I don’t have a phone, so that’s probably why.”

A beat of silence, then, “Ah.” She hums. “I see.”

Foggy disrupts whatever tension there had been by continuing his antics. “Matt, seriously, I really, really care about you. You mean, like, so much to me, dude.”

Matt twitches. “Cool,” he manages to say. “Thanks.”

Marci’s heart picks up, and he can almost feel how wide her grin is when she speaks. “Mister Murdock,” she purrs, “are you incapable of taking a compliment?”

He flushes. “No, I- why would you think that? I can take compliments.” He doesn’t need a working pair of eyes to know she’s giving him an incredulous stare. “I can,” he repeats weakly.

“Matt, you’re one of the greatest people I know,” Foggy tells him sincerely. Matt tries to plan an escape route.

“You’re super smart, especially considering how little official education you’ve gotten,” Marci adds.

“You’re really kind and way too forgiving, even to people who definitely don’t deserve it,” Foggy says.

Frank clears his throat roughly. “You’re the closest thing this world’s got to an angel, Red.”

The blush that had been working its way across his cheeks bursts into flames at Frank’s comment, and he ducks his head automatically. “_Guys_,” he whines.

“You’re really fucking cute,” Frank says, then slaps a hand over his mouth. “Christ.”

Foggy does his best to hide his snickers, but Marci doesn’t even bother to hold back her cackles, slapping at Foggy as she doubles over.

“Frank Castle’s whipped! This is the best thing that’s ever happened to me,” Marci gasps out.

“Shut up,” Frank hisses, but his face and ears are heated up enough to paint out some of his features, keeping him from coming across as intimidating as he probably wants to.

Matt takes a moment to map his face out, taking in the edge of his jaw and the edges of his cheeks, the curve of his lips and his ears that stick out just so. It’s a good face (objectively speaking, of course), and Matt wishes he had more time to learn each tiny detail, to discover every inch of skin. But he never seems to get the courage or the opportunity to, so he’ll settle with this for now and hold onto it for as long as he can.

Marci continues to laugh, Foggy soon joining her, and Matt lets himself relax in the sounds as much as he does try to memorize the way the heat spreads across Frank’s skin.

Maybe, maybe, maybe Frank will stick around long enough for Matt to understand what everyone else saw when they looked at him.

*

“Just say the word and I’ll stop,” Frank tells him.

It’s a statement that emerged from complete silence, Matt gives him an inquisitive look but doesn’t get any explanation. He’s about to ask him to elaborate or give some sort of context for whatever he’s talking about when Frank continues.

“You’ve got the most gorgeous smile I’ve ever seen.”

Immediately, his cheeks flush. “Frank, what-”

“You wanna grab some ice cream?” Frank cuts him off. “The ice cream place down the street is having some sort of sale.”

Matt stares at him, but Frank continues to face forward and keep a steady pace. He sighs. “Yeah, sure. You better not get a weird flavor like last time, though.”

Frank laughs. “I’ll have you know that Cheeto ice cream is a treasure to mankind, but alright.”

Matt rolls his eyes, but there’s nothing but a sort of exasperated fondness that fills his heart. “Whatever you say.”

*

“Murdock,” Frank greets him the next day, just outside the school’s entrance. “You’re really damn brave.”

“Castle,” Matt chokes out. “Are you- is this going to be a thing?”

Frank shrugs. “Like I said, just tell me to stop and I will. Now quit blocking the door or you’re going to get trampled.”

*

“You look really cool when you’re concentrating. Kind of- untouchable, almost.”

Matt furrows his brow. “That’s the second one today,” he says. “You already said one earlier.”

“I know,” Frank tells him. He rests his chin in his palm, heartbeat steady and earnest. “Doesn’t matter.”

Matt honestly has no clue what to say to that, so he makes a vague noise of acknowledgment before turning his attention back to his homework. School waits for no one, and all that.

*

“There isn’t anyone I’d want watching my back more than you.”

“Are you saying you’d bring me into whatever mess you get yourself into?”

Frank sighs. “Just take the compliment, Red.”

*

“You look like the sun when you laugh.”

Matt turns his head away to try and hide the blush that rises to his cheeks. “Christ, Frank.”

“What? It’s true.” Frank chuckles. He mouths something, lips moving so minutely Matt can’t quite make the words out. He frowns, but Frank is talking again before he can dwell on it for much longer. “Is it your turn to pay or is it mine?”

“Mine,” Matt says. He pauses. “Or maybe yours?”

Frank swings an arm around Matt’s shoulders. “Forget it. I’ll pay this time, alright? You should quit studying if you can’t remember the important stuff.”

Matt rolls his eyes good-naturedly. “Whatever you say, Frank.”

*

“You’re a good guy, Red.”

Matt gives an aborted shrug. “Good is subjective.”

“That coming from the Catholic?” Frank chuckles. “Nice try. You’re good, and there’s nothing you can say that will prove me wrong.”

Matt wants to say something in retaliation, but first, Frank already knows about the worst parts of him (history and otherwise), and second, it’s nice to hear someone say it with such strong belief. It makes him think that maybe he could actually be good.

(It’s the first time he’s been able to entertain that thought since losing his sight and his dad, and he’d be lying if he said he didn’t like it.)

“Okay,” he says. “I’ll concede.”

Frank hums. “Good enough for now. One day I’ll get you to believe it too.”

*

This time, there’s a heavy pause before Frank speaks. “I want-” he cuts himself off. “I want to be a part of your life for as long as you’ll let me.”

His heart beats truth, but Matt doubts it’s what he had originally been planning to say. Either way, the words fill his heart with a certain warmth he’s eager to feel more of.

“I’ll hold you to it, Castle,” he tells him honestly. “I’m not tired of you yet.”

Frank’s pleased smile is clear as day from his heart alone, and the light tone of his voice only helps to show it. “I can’t wait.”

**Author's Note:**

> proper ending what proper ending  
cheetos flavored ice cream is a real and actual thing! the place is called big gay ice cream (lmao) which has several stores in nyc. none of them are in hell's kitchen but the one in east village thats somewhat (not at all) close but definitely not 'down the street' kind of close but whatever. u do what u gotta do for the plot  
im def going to have more scenes and stuff between foggy and frank bc they have a lot of potential for a really cool dynamic so! expect to see more of that some day


End file.
